Is quantifying the benefits of improvement important?

I have been involved in what is be called 'model based' process improvement for a very long time.ISO 9000,14000,CMM,eSCM,ITIL...I keep getting asked about the benefits obtain-able from implementing these standards.Is knowing the benefits from implementation important? If some one else got a certain set of benefits does that mean that every one else will?

I have noticed that when it comes to implementation,organizations ( and teams and management responsible for implementation) fall in 2 categories

• Those who believe with conviction that implementation of these frameworks have benefits ( Who asks for return of investment on belief in God ?)
• and those who keep asking on what benefits ,how,when etc?

Though I am still struggle to provide a clear answer to the question 'what benefits? ( it depends/you get what you want..) I am increasingly convinced that, for the change initiative to be succesful, the improvements need to be driven with clear,tangible benefits in mind .

It probably has to do with the burning platform theory that John Kotter has, but establishing upfront goals for any improvement journey is critical for success. These goals cannot be related to process maturity (improve process maturity from 3 to 3.5 or related to certifications),but have to be related to tangible benefits that an organization needs to achieve ( reduced costs,improved speed,improved quality etc)

At a later point we will discuss what are issues in attempting to establish these goals